OITNB Season 5 Episodes 1-6

It’s as if we’ve gone on a bender…

This week John & I binged on 5 episodes of Orange is the New Black! We haven’t done this much tv watching at once since we watched the entire final season of Bates Motel in 2 days. We also watched ep. 5 of Fear the Walking Dead and I’m bitching about that here.

Picking up where we left off in Season 4, Daya has shot an evil guard. And Taystee and friends seek justice for Poussey. Making matters worse, Caputo has gone on air dismissing the actions of the guard who killed Poussey and never bothers to name her, insinuating a full-out riot. Given the treatment of the inmates since the prison went “for-profit”, it’s certainly warranted.

When a Riot Ensues

One of the things we love about this show is its ability to create a very intertwined story among a huge cast of characters. But just what is actually going on inside that prison?

Let’s Start with a BANG!

Daya puts everything on the line & begins a all-out riot with a bang!

The death of Poussey Washington may have been a final blow, but the ladies of Litchfield have been growing in anger for some time. We ended season 4 with Humphrey on the floor and Daya holding a gun over him. Most recently Humps was responsible for insinuating a fight between Crazy Eyes & Kukudio, sending both to medical. Daya has yet to realize she put everything on the line in a moment of passion. Understanding the position Daya has put herself in, Gloria wants to make sure the bastard doesn’t die.

Understanding the position Daya has put herself in, Gloria wants to make sure the bastard doesn’t die. She and Sophia drag Humps to medical, landing him in the bed between the two women who are there because of him. Kukudio makes an attempt to kill Humps off with what she has available and pushes air through his IV causing a stroke. Somehow, he’s still kickin.

Fictional Deaths Hurt

This is back burner time for Piper. And Poussey is getting the attention she deserves. It’s safe to say that this is one of those fictional deaths that have deeply affected the fans of the show. This loss has created grief and havoc throughout the prison.

Soso

Soso has already been a sad, odd girl with suicidal thoughts and few friends. Now, the one person she has truly connected with in the prison has been taken from her. She takes comfort in a weird seance of friends and a nap on the floor where Poussey died.

But she’s still not dealing with grief so well and acknowledges to Janae that she’s actually more angry than anything. She’s having difficulty coping with life continuing around her. The sound of the laughter from the other women pangs her. And she’s pissed she never even got to sleep next to her love. Janae also expresses her grief and how she misses Poussey. Will this be the beginning of a new friendship for Soso?

Taystee & Caputo

I loved seeing the flashback of Taystee meeting Poussey in the library; it was a nice tribute to their friendship. We’ve seen these two have some struggles, but have maintained that best friend status, even when they weren’t friends at all. That’s what real friendship is about.

Taystee and her group see the press conference given by Caputo. And she’s outraged. Caputo doesn’t bother himself to name Poussey. And in their eyes, he has dismissed the actions of the guard responsible. He’s most certainly correct that CO Bayley, young, inexperienced and under trained, is a victim of circumstance. But the friends of Poussey can’t see that through the brick wall created by not respecting the dead enough to name her. They’re also unaware that Caputo has gone rouge from his directives which were to fire Bayley and blame him for everything. Now Caputo is living with the repercussions of the blame instead.

Now Caputo lives with the repercussions of the blame instead. After delivering a satisfying direct jab to the face Taystee takes Caputo hostage and h

We’ll name you Poussey, in remembrance.

e joins the other captives in the bubble. And we end episode 5 in the summer heat, with Caputo duct taped in a near overflowing porta-potty, referred to as “The Poo”. Quite unimaginable. I can barely make myself use a port-a-potty at all.

CO Bayley

Bayley is just a poor asshole in way over his head with this job. Does he still wear diapers??

Bayley is deeply afflicted by what he’s done. And looks like he’s on the brink of suicide. He attempted to turn himself in for murder. But without charges filed, he can’t be jailed. Everyone tells him it will be fine. He doesn’t feel fine at all. This agrees with the victim of circumstance described by Caputo. Bayley is no murderer.

Capitalism & Opportunism

While some of these episodes funniest moments came from the ladies trying to mind their own business… It’s the capitalist criminals advancing storylines throughout the riot.

Nicky and Morello take control of the pharmacy after manipulating Angie and Leanne. The meth-head duo is easily doped up since they are more interested in taking the drugs than dealing them out. But Nicky and Morello now have plans to deal out the meds as they see fit, putting themselves in a power position. Morello uses sex to distract Nicky from possible relapse while surrounded by so many drugs.

Doggett and Boo are keeping quiet in the commissary dealing out candies and turning all the locks over to Blanca. She uses them to barricade the prison.

Red goes digging through Piscatella’s office, desperate to find something that can be used against him. Blanca has also found herself in Piscatella’s office and the pair seems to begin an unlikely friendship and keep themselves going on some serious energy pills. Can someone find me some of that??

Since all of the guards are being held captive, all cell phones have been confiscated and distributed among the inmates. Maritza & Flaca are doing what they do and scouring the internet for attention. While Taystee uses her internet access to go viral with the truth behind the madness at Litchfield. And others take the opportunity to reach out to loved ones.

Gloria called Daya’s mother when she got her hands on a phone. Gloria diverts from her original intent and does not tell Aleida what’s going on inside. But Aleida still discovers the riot and takes the opportunity to earn herself some fame.

Hostages & Trials

Hostages now know what it’s like to be stripped & search on display

The inmates have collected all the CO’s, staff, and the warden and are doing awful things to them. First, we see an underwear-clad, stage debut of the staff, complete with a cavity search. To quote, Alex calls the display

“fucking insane”. After tossing the hostage’s cell phones out to the crowd of inmates, pictures are made public of the situation the hostages are facing. The hostages are then tied together and lead to the bubble.

They are fed the same garbage given to the inmates and buckets to relieve themselves. But one guard finds himself unable to #2 in the room with ot

her people and Maria gives in and takes him to a port-a-potty near Caputo’s Poo.

The hostages are made to perform a “talent show” on the orders of Angie, who managed to get ahold of the gun. While it’s all very disturbing… the actors do a superb job at making light of this heavy situation. And if you don’t crack up at the strip show, you just might be a total prude.

Humps face is drooping, paralyzed, and is suffering from a gun wound, yet is forced to pose for a photograph with the group on stage. He’s left spinning about in the hallway tied to a chair.

While searching for where they hid the gun, Angie and Leanne find Coates hiding in the dryer. Pennsatucky comes to the rescue and helps him escape, with the gun. For her actions, she faces a mock trial by her peers. Boo acts as her lawyer, wearing Caputo’s suit.

Demands & Release

The MCC decides not to storm the prison for the safety of the prison staff… ok ok… to protect some celebrity… Judy, the generic Martha Stewart. Episode 5 we see Judy thrown out of the prison by Taystee. Not before Ms. Judy could be tied to a crucifix, forced onto the roof, and tortured by Yoga and the white-supremacists wrapped up in scarves like jihab. All caught on camera for the evening news.

“We’re burning the bribe.” “Fuck Yeah!” – Flaming Cheetos – Literally

The demands to release the hostages are made (almost) clear. I say almost because of one stipulation – “pending no casualties” the inmates want amnesty for riot participation. I’m curious how many casualties may yet come or what Humps’ condition will represent. Taystee wants Bayley arrested for Poussey’s murder. The rest of the demands are relatively modest things like tampons and Cheetos and reasonable things like decent food and education.

Taystee, Janae, and Cindy decide to use Judy as their speaker of the house and go public with their demands. At the last minute Taystee’s moral compass leads her to stand up for herself and the women at the prison. At this point, the governor gets involved. He sends cases of Cheetos and Taki’s to begin working towards hostage release. Feeling baited, Taystee, aided by Piper, rounds up the snacks and sets them on fire in front of the press.

What’s Next?

I’m sure there’s plenty of details I haven’t covered, with full intent. Hell we did not even mention the drama unfolding for Alex as she deals with Lolly doing time for a crime she’s responsible for. You need to watch the show!! We’re only on episode 6 and so much has happened!

Now that the prison is free of the prize celebrity and no guns, what will it take for the ladies to let their captives go?